Immediate Family

 

Immediate Family

I had never heard of this not-really-a-band, but I really love music documentaries and this is how Immediate Family fell into my lap. The documentary tells the story, mostly in the protagonists' own voices, of a group of musicians that became the backing band of a huge number of 70s hit records, and while not famous as individuals, honed their music together more than they did apart. The title of the documentary comes from the name of the band they ultimately did form, playing mostly songs they wrote and performed but are usually associated with other more famous musicians. It's also a story of human bonding, of the near telepathic link between musicians who know each other so well that they can anticipate what the others will play or how they will react to a musical idea. Very cool and much more convincing as a documentary than the other recent musical documentary I saw, Hired Gun. Immediate Family is full of warmth and the joy of music.